Ian Bell’s appearance at Warwickshire’s press day at Edgbaston on Thursday,
less than 24 hours after he got married, is evidence of the enduring appeal
of county cricket.

Bell returned to Birmingham a little bleary-eyed from a lavish reception at a country-house hotel near Leamington Spa which was attended by a number of England’s Ashes-winning squad and backroom staff, including team director Andy Flower.

Attending a county press day may have appeared beyond the call of duty but Bell has always retained close links with Warwickshire and Chantal, the new Mrs Bell, was happy to spare her husband for a couple of hours.

“It’s always good to catch up with the news and banter from the guys at Warwickshire and I’m always happy to help promote the club,” Bell said.

“Sometimes when you’ve been away with England for a long time it can be difficult to fit back in to a county dressing room, but we’re very fortunate that the players and coaching team at Warwickshire make it very easy for you to slot in.

“I’m also lucky to have a very understanding wife. We will be going to the Maldives on honeymoon for seven nights, which will be a chance to get away from cricket for a while. But when I come back I will be available for three championship matches so that will give me a decent run of games before the Sri Lanka series.”

Bell, along with the majority of England players, will miss the first three weeks of the county season, which beginson Friday, having been given time off after almost five months of relentless international cricket.

But Alastair Cook, England’s leading run-scorer in the Ashes, will play for Essex in their County Championship opener against Kent as he returned from Australia after the Ashes having been omitted from the one-day series and the World Cup.

In general Flower agrees to release centrally-contracted players for county duty more often than his predecessor, Duncan Fletcher, did, recognition that he appreciates that a strong county system underpins a successful national side.

Flower would prefer there to be more gaps in the congested county fixture list for players to rest and prepare for matches, but this season’s schedule will be as chaotic as last year’s with only 17 cricket-free days before the CB40 final on Sept 17.

Despite lobbying from Team England to reduce the County Championship from 16 to 14 matches per team next season, counties have opted to retain the current system, which most believe better prepares players for Test cricket, and instead sacrificed some lucrative T20 and, possibly, longer one-day matches.

Tours by World Cup finalists India and Sri Lanka should help to swell the bank balance of counties, the majority of whom reported hefty losses last year.

There have been cutbacks as a consequence, notably at Gloucestershire, where seven players have departed to be replaced by mostly untried youngsters.

Yorkshire have decided not to employ an overseas player and, with only four players on their books born outside the county, could field their first entirely homegrown side since 1992.

But there are still counties prepared to go down the Kolpak route, most controversially Nottinghamshire, the defending champions, who have brought in former Northamptonshire wicketkeeper-batsman Riki Wessels on an obscure visa.

Wessels, who was released by Northamptonshire 12 months ago because he could not get a visa, is now back in the country on a Tier One Entrepreneur Visa, which required him to set up a company and prove he had £200,000 in his bank account.

Somerset are the bookmakers’ favourites for the title, mainly because of Marcus Trescothick’s ability to bully county attacks and the signings of Steve Kirby and Gemaal Hussain from Gloucestershire.

The recruitment of Sri Lanka mystery spinner Ajantha Mendis while Murali Kartik is on Indian Premier League duty may prove as significant. Somerset have chosen their overseas players wisely in a market of dwindling quality.